MANY of us are keen keep up with the neighbours and German car makers are no exception.

The race for power, pace and prestige has been well and truly joined by the German triumvirate of Audi, BMW and Mercedes, all of whom have produced fire-breathing beasts which wouldn't look out of place on a Formula 1 track.

A product of the finest technology the Audi RS7 is simply awesome, the 560ps four litre twin turbo V8 delivering warp speed and power as the firm seeks to attract the big spenders in search of thrills on four wheels.

It is a huge, stunning-looking car, sleek, curved and angled in all the right places and shod with 20 inch alloys - although the stylish 21 inch five-spoke bladed black wheels on this model are the matter of another £2,000.

But it does look good as do all RS models, with its low stance, its predatory-looking lights with LED surrounds and all the red RS badging and trim exuding a look of power - and it it doesn't fail to deliver.

Harnessed to Audi's quattro four-wheel drive system and a seamless eight speed automatic gearbox, the car powers from 0-60mph in 3.9 seconds - and just for the record, if you can get it on a race track or the German autobahn, it has a top speed of nearly 190mph. The eight-speed automatic gearbox is barely registers the gear changes, but if you like you can have fun with paddles behind the steering wheels.

The acceleration is enough to have you and your passengers reaching for the neck brace, and there is a satisfying V8 roar from the twin exhausts under acceleration.

It also has amazing grip thanks to the all-wheel drive system but even then all the sophisticated electronics are battling to keep it in straight line.

If it looks like a flying machine without wings from the outside the interior is pure space age, featuring just about about every gadget, well most, you could want from a car costing more than £80,000.

Well, that's not strictly true and in this case the car was loaded with extras worth an eye-watering £30,000, including a Bang & Olufsen sound system at more than six grand.

High tech features can include goodies such as cockpit-style head-up display which projects info onto the windscreen, multi-settings for engine management and suspension set up via the intelligent central brain controlled from the console between the two front seats. This also controls music, navigation and telephone connnections.

Fixtures and fitting are pure luxury with a sporty look and soft touch finishes abound.

The four interior seats are also sporty but comfortable. Made from honeycombed quilted leather with grey stitching, they grip the occupants firmly but comfortably.

Flying machine it may be but it is also fairly practical, comfortably accommodating four adults and features a large, shallow but long boot which is accessed via the large hatchback tailgate.

The rear seats fold increasing the 535 litres stowage space to more than decent 1,390 litres.

Fuel consumption is probably not an issue when forking out this much cash, but average consumption according to the car's computer ended up at nearly 25mpg, not bad against a claimed 28.8mpg and I did not have to fill it up after every couple of lampposts. It seems odd to have stop/start technology on such a car, but perhaps it did shift up that economy figure.

The 560ps is not much good if the car won't stay on the road and as you would expect of a car of this pedigree, the handling is faultless, with the all-wheel drive traction and stability programmes making it cling to the road limpet like on fast corners.

The ride however, can be like a go-kart especially when the dynamic option is selected on those engine management settings.

Even when switched to comfort mode the ride is borderline harsh. But if you buy a sporty car like this, that probably is not an issue.

Sports car performance with a bit on top, plus cutting edge technology and car park kudos, it's great, but what a price.